Detectives from Scotland Yard are to fly back to Faro next week to sit in on the interviews of 11 suspects in the continuing Madeleine McCann case.
The Operation Grange team has devised a reported 253 questions to put to the suspects, which may include Robert Murat, Mrs Murat’s wife aka Michaela Walczuck, her former partner Luís António and two other expat Britons.
Murat claims not to have been called, dismissing press reports to the contrary as "fantasy."
Murat lived close to the Praia da Luz holiday apartments where the McCanns were holidaying at the time of Madeleine’s disappearance and was questioned formally as an ‘arguido’ in 2007. He was cleared of any involvement.
Due to the British press taking the view that Murat clearly was involved in Madeleine’s disappearance and printing many inaccurate attacks on the expat, Murat was awarded part of a £600,000 damages payment in July 2008 from British Associated Newspapers, Express Newspapers, MGN Limited and News Group Newspapers which between them had printed nearly 100 'seriously defamatory' articles.
In the latest round of questioning, seven people were going to be heard as defendants and four as witnesses but under Portuguese law defendants are not actually required to answer questions.
This teaser was referred up to the new prosecutor, Inês Sequeira, who decided therefore that everyone involved will at first be classed as a witness, with the proviso that if during questioning the police think they are involved in Madeleine’s disappearance, any such witness immediately can be classified as a defendant.
Scotland Yard apparently have suggested some pretty direct questions that they hope will be asked by the Portuguese police, including whether the witness was involved in the death of the British child who disappeared in Praia da Luz in Lagos, May 3, 2007, and if so, where is the body hidden?
Comments
If an arguido he should not be making statements to the press or anyone not connected to the investigation or his defence. It is expressly forbidden.
Hence - when the McCanns were made arguido's they had to divert tens of thousands to Clarence Mitchell to keep the publicity going in the search for Madeleine.
But the McCanns have only ever wanted witnesses. The irony with Big Joe is that he definitely DOES NOT !
So - any bank clerks that remember being in their bank managers office years ago counting the cash in a large trunk while their manager was having a coffee with a chap who looked just like the ex-PM.
Forget it ... don't play the hero and think you can help modernise Portugal; clean up its corruption etc by coming clean. You will not be told twice.